Future Direction

    I’m writing this to map out where the futures of my two series are going for everyone. As much as I love the Wrong and Strange Visions series, all things must end, and I’m still in the process of deciding how both of them should end. I have a rough map in my mind, and I thought I would share that with everyone.

    The Wrong Series is going to require at least seven books to come to an end with everything that Wrong Regrets will set up. I’ve already written a rough version of a fifth book in the series. It’s one of my favorite books I’ve written so far. I already know exactly how the sixth book needs to go, so I don’t think it’s going to be a problem to write it in a very smooth and quick manner. The problem is the seventh book. I’m going to have to try to find a way to bring together a lot of different characters and story lines into one book. It will probably be the most challenging book I’ve ever tried to write because of the sheer scale of it. It will also be difficult to say goodbye to the characters that I’ve grown to think of as friends. That may sound odd because obviously there is nothing real about Nathan and Sam, but in a world where very little makes sense, they were real to me when I needed them most. They were an escape for someone who had to have an escape. I don’t know if I can wrap up everything in the seventh book, but I’m going to try, and I suspect that it will be a much longer book than I usually write.

    The Strange Visions series is a series that I don’t exactly have completely mapped out. I’ve written the fourth book, which I’m temporarily calling Strange Visions: The Calm, and I know exactly what the fifth book needs to be about, but after that, I have no direction. I know that everything will be resolved at the end of the fifth book. I could technically end the series there. I have an idea for a sixth book that would be set somewhere in Trent’s future after he’s out of college, but that’s only an idea. I don’t know how interested people would be in seeing him as a lawyer, and I don’t even know if book five will work out for him. Maybe he won’t even be around to be a lawyer. I think that a sixth book would be fun, and I even think that ending both of the series on a lucky number like seven would be nice, but I don’t have everything set in my mind about this series. I know that there will be somewhere between five and seven books in the series, and I know that for better or worse, the ending of book five will provide a satisfactory ending for the series if I choose to end it.

    After my two series are finished, I don’t know for sure what I should do. I think that I might just take a break for a while. I’ve practically been working myself to death for the last few months. Then again, I know that I won’t be able to sit on the sideline for too long. My mind will wander, and I’ll have to write something. Maybe I’ll just write for me for a while. I miss doing that. I miss writing what I see in my head without ever worrying about how someone might perceive it. I’ve got a detective novel, a sci-fi series, and a Christian book rolling around in my mind. Maybe I’ll write one of those things. Maybe I’ll simply dream and look for direction in some other area of my life. Either way, I’m looking forward to seeing what the future holds. Back in January, I started something with high expectations. Some of those expectations have ben met and others haven’t, but it’s always been interesting. In some ways, I wish that I could go back and keep my stories for myself so no one could ever judge them, but in others ways, I think it’s incredible that people from every major country have read my work. I’ve gotten a strong response from it. One particular woman in England loved Wrong Place, and I thought that it was incredible that someone could find the characters that have always been running around in my head to be entertaining. I’ve received other great feedback from a lot of different people. I’ve made friends that I wouldn’t have made if I hadn’t done this. There has also been a downside. Some people haven’t liked what I’ve done. It’s made me feel naked and judged. All of this is a reflection of who I am, after all. If someone doesn’t like it, then they certainly wouldn’t like me. That’s a hard thing to accept. It’s hard to accept that someone could think that something that comes from your soul is ugly. It’s still amazing that I can get a reaction out of the people who don’t like me, though. These books and this experience have gotten very strong reactions as a whole. I’ve felt good on one day and then like I was buried the next. It’s been odd, and it’s been hard. The truth is that I don’t even know if I should have started any of this, but I’m going to finish it. I know that I’ve grown as a person through this experience, and if nothing else, I’ve let a few people in on the daydreams that have kept me alive and sane through the worst of times. Maybe most of all, I’m proud of what I’ve been able to do so far, and I know that it’s all worth something great. I don’t know where I’m going in the future, but I know one thing by looking back at the last few months. It’s going to be fun, painful, emotional, and I’m going to be working hard, but no mater what, it’s going to be worth it. 

    Here’s to reflection, and here’s to looking forward to what might be and realizing your own potential and worth, regardless of how unsure the road ahead is.